DENMARK LEADS

New Zealand Times, Volume XLV, Issue 10450, 1 December 1919, Page 10

DENMARK LEADS

FARIV9 GO-OPERATION AND ORGANISATION OF AGRI- - CULTURE. With an area of some eleven million acres, Denmark haa a population of three millions, »a against New Zealand's area- oi sixty-six niiihon acres) and population ot one million, ' lim i/vnniai'K cultivates liueiioively e'-gti« million oi tier eleven uiilnou acres, ana slie also leads tlie world in respect lo larai-co-operauou and tile orgamsation oi agriculture. In view oi tho. period oi reconstruction tflat lies ahead 01 i\ert'"Zeaiuua, uuu tile uece&sivy 101 ineroased pruaucuon to meet the Heavy oongimous, a brief summary ot liuai i/uuiiiai'ii -naa uuue m tue uireo tion aoovo reietretl 10 Bliou.it oe or wturoii'. jiwuidiiigiy, a ".Now Zealand Times" representative took advuniiugo or the si-ay in Wellington ot _ur it Jvjiiipp, ouicntl agricultural advisor to the .Danish Government, w liuorvieiv inm on rneso mutters. "l understand," said . Air JVampp, •'that in New Zealand of recent years a good deal of atfenuon has boon paid 10 Mie various pnaßes oi tlio co-opera-tive movement us well aa to the work ot! agricultural societ-ieo. Denmark may oe consiuered to be one oi .tho most advanced agricultural countries, especially so iar us co-operation is concerned; and as climatic and other conditions in this country are very similar to thoso of Denmark/ it may be possible to some extent I'o adopt here the samo system that k operating i« my country. I should, therefore, like to giro a brief outline of how Van work in connection with the co-opera-tive movement and the organisation of agriculture is carried on in Denmark.'' NETWORK OF ORGANISATIONS. During the last forty years there have been established many hundreds of co-operative societies in Don-mark; and these, again, are federated into a few big organisations. There are besides, a great many other agricultural institutions, run either by private individuals or by the Government; and it may be somewhat difficult lor < a stranger to grasp the full details oi such a network of organisations. '■The co-operative movement in Deninura. has extended to all branches of agricultural production; but as the cooperative butter factories are the mostimportant, they may be given first place. ■' Denmark is situated in the socalled "butter Bono," within which butter manufacture t is a profitable industry ; and the same applies preeminently to New Zealand. But success does not always depend upon natural conditions. A certain wnoum of artificial feeding and artificial improvement of material conditions is often necessary; and in Denmark the cows have to be stall-fed about eight months' in tho year- If New Zealand wanted to export butter continuously all the year round, a certain ■ amount of stall-feeding might bo needed here, too. Although Denmark has an-area of only -about eleven million acres in all, she exports more butter than the whole of Australia, and more even than Now Zealand; and the Danish export of bacon is nearly of the same importance as that of butter. _ This great productivity is duo mainly to the fact that farming with us is carried out in small holdings. OVER 1200 CO-OPERATIVE DAIK FACTORIES. "Wjs have in all 150.000 small holdings, and thero aro about 12W dairy co-operaltiro societies distributed over oil part's of Denmark. In Denmark all the milk is carried to the factory, while in New Zealand it is very often only the cream, that is taken. "vVo do far more in the way of butter than of cheese. Every morning tn <* c " - operative factory sends round a largo van. which calls from farm io foriti for tho milk, which is skimmed in the factory, and tho wagons can take it back the same day to tho farmers. There is a uniform, system of working '>n all tho factories, mid that makes it' possible to get a homogeneous product for the whole country.; Tho farmers are paid for their milk, of r.ourao, according to its buUer-fat content. Each dairy factory is run by a board of directors; and, in conformity with the idea of co-operation, oach membor of a co-opera-tivo societj has one ainglo vote, whether ho is the. owrie* - of a Bingln cow or of thousands. There is a federation of butter factories, which deals with matters common to them all. This organisation runs it* own statistical branch nnd issues fts own statistical yoar-hook. From the statistics thus 'collected 1* can bo found which butter factories are run with the smallest oxponso for each poun4 of butter producod, and tho ! <vholo can thus he keyod up to a high standard. Just as production is cooperative, so la tho selling of the finished product. Thero are several coj operative butter export sociotios. HUNDREDS OF OTHER' COOPERATIVE SOCIETIES". There are forty-six co-operatlvri bacon factories in Denmark. Tins farmers raise tho Jiig3 mainly on grain and skim milki Jt usually takes four or five months to rniso tho pigs to the required rlzoi Some of these bncoii -factories do a good deal of cattio slaughtering as well; but, bnsldoH. thero are special co-operative cattle export societies. Thoro is n fndoro tion for tho bacon factories similar to that for tho butter factories, Tho cooperative Egg Export Society, again, has 650 local branches distributed nil over the country. Enen of those employs a mfln to drive around from farm to farm,, ns a rule once or twice a week. A 00-operativo Potato Export Society haa boon started recently, and there is a big Co-operative Farm Seed Company. Thero nro similar co-operative foodstuff import companies to import tho oil-cake, nmiiKJ, etc., required for feeding cattle J and (in artificial rnnntlrfi import compnny, Which has 1486 local branches; while tho Danish Cb-operntivo Bank has become of great importance during tho last few years. About 1200 different co-onerativo societies are members of it. Thoro is n, good number of co-operntivo societies of other kinds, but of loss importance than thoso montioncd ; nnd there Is n grand fodorntion of all these, embracing all tho federations mentioned. AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES. In addition there are,special agricultural societies. The Royn.l Agricultural JBooicty. is tho oHest-osi&blishfid ■wW*^**

turul society in Denmark. It works in close . co-operation with tho Government m connection with the different operations in regard to agricultural investigation and p.ducational work. There are besides three different kinds of agricultural societies—(l) Hint with tho object of promoting agricultural development generally, (2) the Small Holdcrs' Society, with partly similar and part-!}- political objects; ami (3) the . Society, or Farmers' Union, which mainly deals with class interests for the protection of farmers. All theso havo local branches, and aro run by boards. Aa a rule, each of the ng-. ricultural societies has ono or two agricultural advisors and a. few assistants; and they hold soverai meetings during tho winter months for the purpose of discussing agricultural matters. Various competitions between farmers are also organised, and general investign.tion of tho soil, etc., is carried on by ' the advisers. 700 HEKD-TESTING SOCIETIES.' These societies work in connection with tho Government, which pays half of their expenses. There are n great j number of BOpieties for breeders of horses, cattle, and pigs; and specially may bo mentioned the milk-testing, or herd-.testinK, societies. There are TOO of these, and each of them employs a travelling inspector who goes round from farm to farm with his, instruments, testing tho milk on the spot. These societies have been in operation :s,omo HO years of so, and their work has ■ resulted in a, great increase in the value :of our dairy herds. During the last few years the farmi seed-growers' societv has become of great importunco; and there aro eevernl other societies for poultry-breeders, ra/bbit-breeder!;—you don't need these j last in New Zealand, of course^ —potatogrowers, and sugar-beet-growers. I might just mention the experimental work. There are about ten State- experimental farms, carrying oa tho scientific part of the work; and about 100 agricultural advisers and assistants are employed by the different hocieties or by the Government, conducting the field experiments on private farms, and so on. As a rule, there are every year some 150 manure experiments carried on; and special horticultural experiment stations for trying fruittrees njid vegetables has been established recently; also a State butterfactory. An experiment station for cattle foods has been in existence for many years. * AGRICULTURAL EDUCATION, The more academic or scientific part of agricultural education may be acquired at,tho Royal Agricultural Collage, Copenhagen. This is a State institution; but there are about 20 agricultural schools scattered throughout tho country, and these are privately owned. All of these schools Jiave a specia.l dairy course, and there are four special dairy course, _and there are folir the so-called _high schools, of which there are 70 in the couritry, is general education, but, as thev are mainly attended by young farmers, many of them have an agricultural course, too. There is a federation of agricultural colleges and schools for dealing with matters ol interest to them all. In this connection, I may mention that there has boen felt the need for one strong body to deal with all the different agricultural societies . and co-operative societies'. This has just been established, anl may be called a Board of Agriculture, though .it is not a Government concern.